Gas producing apparatus



April 19, 1932. A. R. STRYKER GAS PRODUCING APPARATUS Filed Sept. lO,1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l t .l m om n n .u 3 www im b 1 a L Z m e? 1 9 Q o 2f /m l \l f Z 3 3 7. MW l 2. n0 4 9N 0 Mmm... um) afw/ uw .u. L`.I.....I.......,H...J Q .U 7 0u 7 E n ad l mau n n M lil d 9 f 0 d f.i1 l n l Q l April 19, 1932. A R, STRYKER 1,855,034

GAS PRODUC ING APPARATUS Filed Sept. l0, 1928 2. Sheets-Sheet 2 3b l 3blnocmor (Slben' 1i @azz/g Patented Apr. 19, 1932 l 1,855,034

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE-4L l ALBERT R. STRYKER, F ST. JOSEPH,MISSOURI GAS IPRODUCNG APPARATUS Application filed September 10, 1928.Serial No. 305,003.

and is primarily concerned with a novel apknown as blue or water gas. Yg paratus for converting the entire Volatile With these objects in viewI'have devised and fixed carbon constituents of coal, irrethe 4apparatusfor carrying out the process of spective of its grade, into gas which bythe my invention, all ofV which -will appear fully 55 use of myapparatus and process may be of and in detail in thel followingdescription, different characters, such as illuminating gas, taken finconnection 'with the accompanying gas for heating purposes and the like.drawings, in which, v

It is a primary object and purpose of the Fig. l is a partial verticalsection'and lside 1o present invention to produce gas from coal,elevation of the essential elements ofthe ap- 6 particularly theinferior grades of coal, utiparatus which I have devised.v lizing andextracting all of the heat produc- Fig.Vv 2 is a fragmentary `enlargedvertical ing elements of the coal and separating the section through thelower part of the retort same from the mineral matter, ash and the ofthe apparatus,fand

This invention relates to gas production gasoil now used forcarbureting'what is X5 like. By this process and apparatus it is de-Fig. 3 is a horizontal section substantially 66 signed that many gradesof soft or bitum1 on the plane of line 3;-3 of Fig. 2. Y nous coal, notnow suitable for gas produc- Like reference characters refer toliketion, may be used with a consequent greater parts in the differentfigures of the drawings. reduction in the cost of production; and thatIn the construction illustrated a retort shell also the waste coal atthe mines, which is now l, preferably of steel, suitably lined at its 70universally thrown away, may be utilized inner side with refractorymaterial, is proeven though it many times contains a very vided, theupper section of which tapers uphigh percentage of slate, rock and thelike. wardly and the lower section Zof which ta"- Furthermore, brownlignite may be used by pers downwardly, as shown. In practice the myprocess and with the apparatus which I retort may be betweenl 80 and 90`feet in 75 have invented in the same manner. height and 11 feet indiameter at thebottom, By utilizing the inferior grades of softv ortapering to 4 feet in diameter at its top, bituminous coal, lignite orthe like, or waste, though, ofcourse, these dimensions lare not whichnow is a source of loss, trouble and necessarily the only dimensionswhich may annoyance, not only is the raw material rebe used. The retortat its bottom rests upon 30 quired for gas production greatly reduced ina suitable support 3 within which an eccencost but it is not necessaryto ship higher trically located androtatably mounted grate grades of gasproducing coal long distances 4 is positioned -which'may be driven atany to the places where they are used; for in pracsuitable speedthroughthe worm and tangent tically all sections of the United States thereconstruction illustrated at 5, it being u'nder- 85 can be foundbituminous coal lor lignite or stood that vthe worm 5 ,is driven fromany the like and the transportation thereof to anyl suitable `source ofpower. given place is relatively short compared to Below the -grate is ahopper 6 into which the transportation now required in many the ashdrops as it is passed through the grate, places for the proper grades ofbituminous the lower end of which is equipped with a 90 coalnecessarily'used. Y suitable outlet closure 7 which may be ropened It isalso contemplated with my invention to deliver the ash from the hopper.The lowthat the apparatus `may be installed at or ader end of thelretort is not lined with refracjacent a mine and the gaseous fuelproduced tory material but is surrounded by a hollow Y thereby pipedover a large area with a total ring or drum 8 vin which'water iscarried, said 95. elimination of freight costs. Y drum resting upon themember 3 and upon A further object of my invention is to prothesurrounding suppor-ting wall 9, as shown. vide an apparatus and operatethe same Vin It is to be understood that the apparatus is accordancewith a novel process thereby obmounted upon a suitable fioor l0, thehopper y, taining an elimination of the use of so-called 6 extendingtherethrough and that the retort do may extend upwardly through otheroors of a building, one of which is indicated at 11.

A pipe 12 leads into one side of the ash collecting hopper 6 below thegrate 4 in the length of which is a blower 13 to force air to below thegrate. A branch pipe 14 extends from the pipe 12 upwardly and is thenturned horizontally, its end passing through the side of the retort insubstantially tangential relation thereto. A control damper 15 ismounted in the pipe 14, the purpose of whichw-ill later appear. lA steamcarrying pipe 16 at one end passes through a side of the hopper` andconnects with the inner end of the pipe 12,v and in practice this pipe16 may also connect" with the upper pipe 17 leading into the upper endof the retort, it being understood that steam generated in the shell'8may be carried through said pipes to either the upper or lower end oftheretort, as shown.

Near the upper end .of the retort is a branch vpipe 18 having a closingVvalve or damper 19 therein. At its outer end'the pipe 18 is formedVwith a-vertical extension, the upper part 2O of which has an open upperend with a closure 21 therefor, while the downwardly extending part 22enters the upper end of a wash box 23, connecting with a sleeve' 22awhich, at its lower end, enters intoand extends below the level of thewater in the box. ,An outlet pipe 24 leads away from the wash box to agas relief holder (not shown) at a vpoint above the level of the water.Y c

A pipe 25 connects to the vertical extension at the end ofthe outletpipe 18 and is then ycarried downwardly to adjacent the iioor 10,

there being equipped with a power driven l vexhaust or suction apparatus26, and after it has passed through the floor 10 it is extended as ahorizontal pipe 27l to the hopper 6 with which it connects and intowhich it leads. A by-pass pipe28around the suction exhaust y126 connectsthe pipes 2'5 and 27, 'as shown, in which is a valve 29 tov open andclose said bypass pipe. Likewise/two valves 30 are located inthe pipe27, one `at each side of the point of connection of the vby-pass 28therewith.

HOver the upper end of the vertical member 2O is a` dust collectingapparatus including the various elements 31, 82 and 33which not be -ingin themselves of novel construction are not specifically illustrated ordescribed. Such dust collecting `apparatus is old and well known and itsuse in conjunction with the Aapparatus which I have devised willlaterappear.

A bin or hopper` 34for holding coal for the `blasting charges islocatedto oiie'side of and near the upper end of the retort having an outletpipe i 35 with vertical branches B6 which are disposed around the retortat spaced apart t intervals and which deliver coal to` suitableautomatic weighing andcharging machines `37v which serve to deliver thecoal carried Athereto to inletY chutes 38 to the lower part of againstthe grate.

well known and used commercially. The coal pulverizing unit, of course,will be associated with the retort but as it in itself is not new andYforms no part of the present invention it is notshown ordescribed.A

Operation: in the use and operation of the apparatus described a chai-geof coal is entered into the retort from the bin or hopper 34, known a'sthe blasting chai-ge. This coal 1enters* the lower part of the retortand rests It is ignited and airis forced by the blower '13 through thecoal to burn the saine. The damper at 15 is opened anda part of the airpasses `into the retort above the coal.

The air which enters through thepipe l2 below the grate is forcedupwardly through the coal and its oxygen combines therewith with aresultant production of producer gas which ordinarily contains, roughly,20% carbon monoxide and 480% nitrogen. Vrl"he producer @as is acteduponby the air abore'tlie coal which enters through the branchv pipe 14and the carbon,k monoxide istburned so that a completereduction of thecarbon in the coal to carbon dioxide is obtained with the resultantproduction of. high'heat. The tangential entrance Vof air 'into theretort through the pipe 14 causes a spira-l upward movement of theproducts of combustion and lthe heat produced by the consumption of thecoal is absorbed by Lthe refractory walls of the retort so that theretort` isheated to 'a very high degree Aof temperature.

contemplated that utilization of this waste 5 if heat may be hadforrdry-ing the pnlverized coal, or it vmay be used for the productionof steaiiiv as desired. The .utilization of waste heat in itself is notnew and the details of mechanism or apparatusv which may be requiredtherefor is not shownv in the present application.

rllhe air blasting step of the process iscon-Lk tinued until thetemperature at the inner sides of the walls of the retort reaches vfrom1500 to 1800o F. Of course, it 'is not essential that all of theblasting charge be consumed forif any ofthe carbon of thev coal Yislleft unconsuined it can very readily lbe utilized with additional coalin*4 the' succeeding gas The i Vproducts vof combustion from the blastypass icc 'i making step of the operation. In fact it is contemplatedthat a predetermined amount of coal, sutlicient to maintain a properfire level, shall be charged into the retort in small amounts at setintervals by the weighing and charging machines.

In the succeeding step of the operation the closure 21 is moved to aclosed position, the damper is closed, the blower 13 stopped, and theexhauster at 26 is started in operation. Simultaneously the screwconveyer at 40, which is motor driven, is started and pulverized coal isfed continuously in at the top of the heated retort and evenly'distributed therein. As the coal passes down the heat of the walls ofthe retort acts thereupon to drive olf the volatile gases, which aredrawn downwardly7 and carried through the pipes 27 and 25 and thencedownwardly from the downward extension 22 to and through the wash box23. It is to be understood that the valve or damper at 19 is closedduring this step of operation. The gas passes outwardly through the pipe24: to the relief holder therefor.

The operation continues until there is insuficient heat left in thewalls of the retort to drive off volatile material.y There will bedeposited on t-he ignited fuel bed at the bottom of the retort theresidue of the coal, namely, the ash and the fixed carbon whichordinarily is known as gas coke.V This operation continues from 10 to 12minutes and between 2,000 and 3,000 pounds of coal may be treated inthis period of time.

The fixed carbon or coke deposited upon the ignited fuel bed is heatedto a very high degree but is not consumed due to the absence of oxygen.After the volatile constituents of the coal are driven off the exhausterat 26 is stopped from operation, the various valves at may be closed,steam which has been produced in the jacket 8 is introduced through thepipe 16 into the hopper 6 and forces itself upwardly through theincondescent mass. This passage of steam may be later reversed; that is,steam is entered through the pipe 17 into the upper part of the retort,the valve 19 is closed, the blower 13 stopped from operation, the firstvalve 30 opened, whereupon the steam forces downwardly through the massof incandescent material and blue Water gas produced which by-passes theeXhauster through pipe 28 and passes outwardly through the wash box asisevident.

The reversal of the passage of the steam serves to withdraw additionalheat from the walls of the retort and to completely consume the upperportion of the incandescent coke, it being apparent that on the upwardpassage of steam through the mass of incandescent material, the lowerportion thereof is consumed and combined with the water for theproduction of water gas first and becomes coke while the upper portionremains Y in'an incandescent state. Of course, it is possible and manytimes desirable to produce other types of gas than the water gas. Forinstance, producer gas alone may be desired, in which case air is blownupwardly by the blower 13 through the incandescent coke combiningtherewith for the production of producer gas alone. This completes thecycle of operations. The succeeding cycles are identical with thatdescribed. After a charge of coal has been .treated first to drive oflthe volatile or gaseous lconstituents thereof and then to convert thecarbon into either producer or water gas, a new fuel charge is admittedinto the retort and the cycle. of operations repeated. It is, of course,apparent lthat many gas making combinations are possible in thatproducer gas may be made for a short period and after that the water orblue gas and any desired mixture of gases for the attainment of a properand desired heating .value of the gas obtained. f

The air blasting step of the process takes from 4; to 5 minutes and insome cases a little longer dependingV upon the grade of coal used, whilethe gas making step, as previously stated, requires approximately from10 to 12 minutes. v

With this construction soft or bituminous coal of any and all grades maybe used for gas making. Also waste vwhich contains a Vlarge percentageof carbon may be used. The

ash from the coal is taken care of readily by the apparatus. All of thevolatile constituents of the coal are Vdriven off by heat i and all ofthe fixed carbon which will not distill into gas is consumed in theproduction of either producer or water gas. The apparatus is verypractical and eflicient. It is to be understood that the variouscontrols Y for the valves, the blower andthe exhauster,

are of well known and standard construction and are operative from acentral control boa-rd in the plant. AThe invention is defined in theappended claims and is to be considered comprehensive of all forms ofstructure coming within their scope.

I claim:

1. gas generating apparatus comprising a vertical retort, a gratelocated at the lower end of saidretort, an outlet conduit lat the upperend of the retort, means to close said outlet, a pipe leading from saidoutlet conduit downwardly and opening into the retort below the grate,and means for delivering fuel into the retort at a point above saidgrate and below theoutlet conduit.

2. An apparatus for making gas comprising, an elongated verticalretorthaving an. outlet conduit adjacent its upper end, `said conduitterminating in a vertical section open at both ends, a removable closurefor closing the upper end of said section, a wash box attached to thelower portion fordsaid seotion, a pipe leading fromA said sectionbetween the upper and lower ends thereof, la valve in said outletconduit for opening and closing the same, a grate at the lower end ofthe retort, a closed hopper below said grate, an air carrying conduitentering said hopper, means for forcing lair therethrough, a branchconduit extending Jfrom said air conduit into said hopper at a sidethereof a distance above its lower end, a damper for closing the branchconduit, an exhauster c0nnected in said pipe between the ends thereof,said pipe leadingat its lower end into said hopper, means for deliveringV,fuel into the-retort at a point adjacent the entrance of said branchconduit thereinto, and additional means for entering fuel into ltheretort at the upper vend thereof.

3. A construction containing the elements -in combination defined inclaim 2, combined 'with a bypass pipe connectedvwith the first mentionedpipe and-passing around said eX K hauster, saidr by-pass pipehaving avalve AP therein to open and close the same, and said irstmentioned pipe,having two Valves there in, one at each side of where theby-pass pipeconnects therewith.

4. A construction containing the elements in combination defined inclaim 2, ycombined with meansfor admitting steam into said hopper belowthe grate.

5. A construction containing the elements in combi-nation defined inclaim 2, combined with means for admitting steam into the re tortadjacent the vupper end thereof.

In testimony whereof I affix my si nature.

ALBERT n. s'rnY En, f

